


Love, Lies, and Librarians

by tehfanglyfish



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Arthur Finds Out About Merlin’s Magic (Merlin), Canon Era, Deviates From Canon, Geoffrey/His Books, Getting Together, M/M, Merlin's Magic Revealed (Merlin), Scruffy Arthur, when in doubt go to the library
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-24
Updated: 2020-04-24
Packaged: 2021-03-01 18:54:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,770
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23821906
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tehfanglyfish/pseuds/tehfanglyfish
Summary: Arthur burst into the library at an obscenely late hour, clad in his nightclothes.“Can I help you, sire?” Geoffrey tried his best not to give away the fact he’d been sleeping at his desk.“Magic!” the king barked. “I need books on magic.”
Relationships: Merlin/Arthur Pendragon (Merlin)
Comments: 105
Kudos: 1248
Collections: Scruffy Pendragon Fest





	Love, Lies, and Librarians

**Author's Note:**

> My second Scruffy!Pendragon submission. I adore this fest and its mods. 
> 
> As always, these characters never were nor will they ever be mine but I love them just the same.

The trouble with getting older, Geoffrey had long since decided, was that one’s body didn’t keep up with one’s mind.

There was the overt evidence of aging – the wrinkles and the grey hair, where hair remained anyway. It had been decades since he could comfortably spend a winter afternoon in the open air without a hat.

Even worse were the unseen signs – the aches and pains, the creaky joints, the difficulty standing. Such afflictions left one inclined to stay seated for long periods of time.

Take tonight. After finishing his meal in the dining hall, he’d sat around to gossip with some of the other old men. As they’d done for years, they made idle conversation, speculating on castle romances and breakups, complaining about the price of ale these days, and critiquing the new recipe the kitchen staff were using for the peas.

Eventually discussion had turned to the topic of the king.

“Have you seen the state of his hair?” asked Nigel. “It’s a disgrace.”

Nigel was Camelot’s oldest groom and had cared for the royal horses since even before Uther seized power. The man could endure and, as a result, he wasn’t one to mince words.

“It is a little shaggy,” Gaius conceded, “but I wouldn’t go so far as to say it’s disgraceful.”

“Well that’s because it’s your nephew who’s supposed to trim it. You’re just covering for him slacking on the job.”

“I’ll have you know,” Geoffrey interjected, “that it’s not Merlin’s fault.”

“Then why is Arthur running around looking like one of the Rising Sun regulars after a month-long bender?”

“He has a lot on his mind.”

“Such as?”

“That’s royal business.”

“And how are you privy to it?”

“I’m the royal librarian. Which means that my job involves more than cleaning the horses’ behinds.”

“At least I don’t look like a horse’s behind.”

“Gentlemen,” Gaius cut in. He’d been the peacemaker in their trio for decades. “Speaking of behinds, let me tell you about the emergency procedure I had to perform this morning. Someone got something stuck somewhere.”

Hours later, chased out of the dining hall by a legion of serving maids armed with mops and brooms, Geoffrey ambled toward his chambers, letting his mind wander.

No matter how many times he and Nigel had asked, Gaius refused to give up the name of the unfortunate knight who’d needed discreet treatment earlier that day.

Not that Geoffrey faulted him. His position as court physician left him in possession of secrets that really should be kept. As did Geoffrey’s.

It was true that, apart from some juicier love letters and diaries, his library duties rarely afforded him such intimate knowledge of the denizens of the realm. But that didn’t mean that Geoffrey hadn’t been entrusted with delicate knowledge that wasn’t his to share.

*****

Geoffrey’s most recent discovery came a little over a fortnight ago, when Arthur had burst into the library at an obscenely late hour, clad in his nightclothes.

“Can I help you, sire?” Geoffrey tried his best not to give away the fact he’d been sleeping at his desk.

“Magic!” the king had barked. “I need books on magic.”

“I’m afraid those were all destroyed decades ago. Your father…”

“I don’t have time for lies, Geoffrey. My father was an over-confident fool. I know how protective you are of your books. I would wager my entire kingdom that you saved more than a few on sorcery. Now show me where they are.”

Arthur wasn’t wrong. Uther largely regarded Geoffrey as a part of the castle furnishings, albeit one that possessed a vast repository of knowledge on treaties and genealogy. Just as one wouldn’t expect a chair or a table to rebel, Uther never considered that Geoffrey might disobey the directive to burn all books on magic.

Instead of complying, he had hidden those volumes, protecting them for what was now going on thirty years. He had no intention of letting Arthur finish his father’s work.

“Your books are safe,” Arthur said, sensing Geoffrey’s hesitancy. “I simply wish to read them.”

“Why?” He suspected the king was telling the truth but needed more information before he was ready to release those books.

“I have questions that no one is willing to answer. Especially not my useless clotpole of a servant.”

Hearing Arthur use Merlin’s term made Geoffrey smile.

“Very well, sire. Sit here and I’ll fetch them for you.”

The late night soon became a very early morning. Arthur devoured the first three books Geoffrey brought out, then demanded more.

“These are just spellbooks,” Arthur complained. “What do you have on magical theory?”

Another two volumes and the king still had questions.

“Is there anything on innate magic? I need to know if it’s real – if someone can be born with it.”

So _that_ was what this was all about.

Geoffrey had had his own suspicions about Merlin since he’d first arrived in Camelot. Gaius, goddess love him, sometimes chastised his nephew a little too loudly. How the whole five kingdoms didn’t know about Merlin’s magic and how Arthur had only just figured it out, Geoffrey couldn’t say.

“I am no expert, my lord,” Geoffrey said as he placed yet another book on the table, “but I have heard that it’s possible.”

“Which would mean that my father executed people for something they had no control over.”

“That was one of his atrocities.”

They both froze at his words.

“From what I’ve read tonight,” Arthur finally said, “many of the uses of magic are benign or even helpful. I’ve met enough angry sorcerers to know their power can be used for harm, but most of these spells have been anything but malevolent.”

“Just like the people who cast them.”

“I was only an infant when he launched the Great Purge. What can you tell me about it?”

Though it wasn’t easy for Geoffrey to recount what he’d witnessed, he tried his best. Afterall, he had a duty to preserve the records, including his own. Time had done little to ease the pain and anger of recalling those he’d lost – friends, family, castle staff who met horrific fates because of Uther.

“Which is why Gaius was so insistent he tell no one,” Arthur said thoughtfully. “But he still shouldn’t have lied. Not to me. He had to know I would protect him.”

“Maybe he didn’t want to put you in that position. And maybe,” Geoffrey continued, remembering some particularly heated arguments he’d overheard between Gaius and Merlin, “he was trying to protect you.”

“He’s still a clotpole.”

“Of the highest order.”

Merlin had caused far too much trouble in the library for Geoffrey not to agree.

“It’s late,” Arthur said. “I shouldn’t keep you. Do you mind if I take this one with me?”

“Of course, sire,” Geoffrey said, fighting his inner impulse to put the book back in hiding.

****

The next couple of weeks he kept a close watch on the king and his manservant. An outsider might assume that all was well, but Geoffrey picked up on the telltale signs of discord between them.

To begin with, Merlin started behaving like a model servant. Friendly teasing and playful insolence were replaced with deference. During council meetings, Merlin stood in the corner with eyes averted, stepping in to fill the king’s water goblet without prompting. Arthur’s armor gleamed so brightly that George commented on it.

“This must be a big fight,” George said. He was helping Geoffrey sort books one afternoon. “Merlin deep cleaned the king’s chambers and even pressed his tunics.”

“They’ll sort things eventually,” Geoffrey replied.

“I’m not sure. Have you seen Arthur’s hair? They’ve fought before, but he always let Merlin trim it. Now he won’t let Merlin help him dress or bathe or shave. It has to be something major. I’d almost bet he found out about Merlin’s magic.”

He really should take over when I retire, Geoffrey thought as their conversation moved on to other topics. George was far too meticulous and observant to be wasted on polishing.

As the days passed, the rift between Arthur and Merlin grew, just like the king’s hair. Even those less perceptive than George noticed. While they might not know the cause, it was impossible to miss the scruffiness so uncharacteristic of Arthur. For Nigel, whose beauty standards revolved around tails and manes, to remark on it meant things were bad indeed.

Geoffrey hoped they could work it out. Merlin’s secret needed to come to light but the tension between them was unsettling, especially after years of friendly mischief, soft smiles, and intense stares that suggested other secrets were being kept, though not that well.

But it was late, Geoffrey’s knees ached, and he was tired after the hours spent talking with Gaius and Nigel. He decided to take the shortcut through the library to his chambers. Not only would he get to bed sooner but he could also check up on his books.

That was odd. The door he sworn he’d locked was slightly ajar and a light was spilling out into the corridor. Someone was snooping, probably trying to steal his prized copy of Martial’s _Epigrams_. Well, he’d put a stop to that right now.

He eased the door open the rest of the way, careful to remain silent so the miscreant would have no warning of his approach.

Looking around he saw no one. He thought perhaps they’d left until he heard it, a soft whimper from behind a bookshelf.

Ah. A maidservant had snuck off with her suitor. Young love was to be encouraged, but not in the library.

Although, Geoffrey decided as he made his way around the shelf, an exception could be made. If ravishing one another in the natural philosophy section was how Merlin and Arthur sorted things, well, that was alright.

Just as quietly as he’d crept in, Geoffrey made to leave. Passing by a table, he noticed the book Arthur had borrowed, along with an unfurled parchment. Curiosity got the better of him and he gave it a quick glance.

“…hereby rescinded, effectively immediately. Apart from the following prohibited uses, magic and those who practice it are free to…”

A moan from the stacks reminded Geoffrey that he really should be on his way. There was just one thing he needed to do first. Moving as quickly and as stealthily as his creaky knees would allow, he darted into the histories, grabbing a volume on Camelot’s past that extended many centuries back.

Geoffrey left the book on the table beside the parchment, strategically opened to the chronicle of King Alwyn and his husband, Meurig.

**Author's Note:**

> Martial was a Roman poet whose [Epigrams](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martial#Martial's_Epigrams) address a variety of aspects of life in ancient Rome. Many were critical and some were obscene.


End file.
